Top 10: San Francisco Dive Bars

In San Francisco, a city full of wealth and taste, dive bars are the great equalizers. Dot-com millionaires and the kind of guys who start drinking in the a.m. get exactly the same treatment from bartenders -- a semisnarl if you're lucky, and a heavy pour.

You could write a whole book -- or two -- about dive bars in the Mission. Since it’s where the city goes to have a good time, or at least forget the bad times, the Mission supports a dive bar on nearly every block. But most every neighborhood has at least one divey den of booze that, like a family secret, most people know about but haven’t discussed for a long time.

Don't be one of those people who asks for a froufrou drink at a dive bar. The goal here is to ingest lots of alcohol at good prices. So go ahead and drink the most expensive Scotch or bourbon they have -- just keep it simple. On the rocks or with soda will keep you on good terms with the bartender.